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The Minnesota Vikings didn’t just sign Josh Freeman for fun, they plan to use him — likely even as a starter.

Freeman, who signed with the Vikings last week after an ugly divorce from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, is still in the process of learning the Vikings’ offensive system, but he will eventually start for them this season, FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer said during FOX NFL Sunday.

The Vikings drafted Christian Ponder 12th overall two years ago, and they held high hopes that he could be their quarterback of the future coming into this season. After a rough start to the year, which included five interceptions in three games and a rib injury, Ponder finds himself looking on from the sidelines and wondering if he’ll get his job back once he’s healthy.

Freeman’s addition makes it seem unlikely that Ponder will regain his starting job, at least with any sort of comfort or certainty. It also seems unlikely that Matt Cassell, who has started the last two games for the Vikings, is in the team’s long-term plans at quarterback. That means Freeman should have more than enough opportunity to prove his worth to the team before the end of the season.